On Sept. 8, 1990, Texas Rangers pitcher Nolan Ryan failed to catch a ground ball off the bat of Kansas City Royals player Bo Jackson. It bounced off Ryan’s glove and into his face, splitting his lip, before he threw Jackson out. The team manager and trainer rushed out but Ryan waved them off.
Ryan continued pitching as if nothing happened. He led the Rangers to a 2-1 game, all while blood was dripping down his chin onto his jersey. Ryan got six stitches after the game. No big deal.
“When that actually happened, all I could think was, ‘I hope he can stay in.’ It’s so legendary that here’s a guy that’s this tough Texan and he goes out there and gets hit in the face and continues to pitch,” said Chuck Morgan, the Rangers’ executive vice president of ballpark entertainment, promotions and production.
To commemorate the gory game, Rangers fans will receive a replica blood‑stained throwback jersey on May 29 at a matchup against the Royals. Promo items are usually limited to the first 10,000 attendees, but this time every fan with a ticket will get a jersey.
“This would rank pretty high [in a list of Nolan giveaways],” Morgan said. “You can go almost to any sports bar in the country and see a picture of that hanging on the wall. It’s just an iconic moment.”
@shalen1976 The Texas Rangers have an amazing one of a kind Nola Ryan jersey for you!!! #texas #allfortexas #baseballlife #fyp #fypシ ♬ original sound – ❌ Shalen ❌
But fans who want the jersey might have to take a pass – the cheapest tickets are going for $63 in the nosebleeds, while other games against the Royals start at $24. A little too rich for some fans’ blood.
“There were discussions from several departments on this, and we kind of talked about if this is even a possible item,” said Zach Geist, Rangers’ director of promotions and ballpark entertainment. “Like, can you make a jersey? And then it turned into, well, we could probably screenprint it. We’ve got images, and we’ve got photos. Let’s see if we can recreate it.”
Geist said the team spent a couple of months working on different color options for the blood. He added that the jersey went through four or five more rounds of editing than for a normal shirt giveaway.
“Trying to find the right blood color and the right printing options to make it look authentic was very tough,” Geist said. “I think it was pretty much like how the jersey looked back then.”
In addition to the bloody jersey, Ryan will be featured in another giveaway on July 20.
@archertoks #nolanryan ♬ Thunderstruck – AC/DC
The Nolan Ryan “punching” bobblehead will honor Ryan’s infamous brawl with Robin Ventura on Aug. 4, 1993. Ryan drilled the White Sox player in the back, prompting Ventura to charge the mound. Ryan put Ventura into a headlock, threw multiple punches to the top of Ventura’s head, then landed an uppercut to his face. Ironically, Ventura was tossed out of the game while Ryan was allowed to stay. The Rangers went on to win that game, too.
The Rangers have yet to release an image of the bobblehead. However, the team did say the giveaway is sponsored by none other than Nolan Ryan Beef.
Only in Texas, y’all.
